Jim Clark Rally dropped by new look BRC for 2016

The Jim Clark Rally over Berwickshire's closed roads has always been one of the most popular BRC rounds.

Published:11:29Thursday 03 December 2015

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The MSA British Rally Championship (BRC) has confirmed that the Jim Clark Rally has been dropped from its calendar for the 2016 season.

The event has been dropped by the championbshipo organisers due to the fact that it is on gravel again in 2016.

BRC confirmed its calendar for the 2016 season last week when championship manager Iain Campbell said he was pleased with the programme and is excited about the year ahead.

He sexplained: “We are delighted to welcome the Nicky Grist Stages and Rally Isle of Man onto the calendar for next year. To have a mixed surface event in the championship in the form of the Nicky Grist Stages is a real coup and something the BRC hasn’t done since the ‘80s, while the Manx and the BRC go hand in hand and will provide a fitting double points finale.

“These two events are replacements for the Granite City Rally, which has a new organising team for 2016, and the Jim Clark Rally which is back on gravel again for next year as it cannot be certain of gaining the road closures required next summer.

“It has been a real jigsaw puzzle to put it all together, but the events we have are among the best in the British Isles and we cannot wait to see the best in the British Isles and we cannot wait to see the best drivers in the best cars fight for supremacy!”

The only round to be held in Scotland now is the Dumfrties-based RSAC Scottish Rally on June 25.

The 2016 BRC season will be open to rally cars conforming to FIA homologated classes. The top category will see the exciting R5 cars do battle with S2000 and RRC cars at the front of the field, while support classes including the Junior BRC for R2 specification cars will showcase the very latest rally machines on the special stages. There is also a National Rally Cup for non-homologated cars that have an MSA log book that will compete over the same events with the same challenges.

The Jim Clark Reivers Rally will still be a counter in the 2016 ARR Craib MSA Scottish Rally Championship, on Sunday, June 5. Berwickshire, however, will once again lose out as the event will be based in Kelso.

The organising team are delighted to announce that the Aberdeen-based haulage firm have confirmed that 2016 will be their fourth season as title sponsors to the series.

Jedburgh’s Dave Robson, championship committee chairman, commented: “Whilst there is no doubt that 2015 was a difficult season, we are working hard to provide the best championship possible in 2016 and we take a great deal of confidence in the continued support from ARR Craib.

“The changes to the calendar will give the championship a fresh feel and we continue to work towards putting incentives in place to help attract both existing and new competitors throughout the field. We feel these changes will help to ensure that the Scottish Rally Championship remains the place to be in 2016 and we look forward to another great season starting with February’s Snowman Rally in Inverness.”